9. Practice asking the questions: ask all possible questions to the different

parts of the sentences:

1. A transistor can switch flows of electricity as fast as the vacuum tubes used in

computers.

2. The transistors use much less power than equivalent vacuum tubes and are

considerably smaller.

3. Hardware manufacturers introduced personal computers, and software

manufacturers began developing software to allow the computers to process words,

manipulate data, and draw.

10. Speak on the topic using the following word-combinations:

Data processing system, hardware, software, firmware, processing, control devices, effective operation, systems software, applications software, to solve specific problems, to assist people, performing tasks, controlling, to move data into and out, an application program, systems programmers, highly trained specialists, inventory control, investment analysis, to refer to an application program, protected programs, read­-only memory (ROM), a sequence of instructions (software), to be substituted for hard­ware, to use special electronic circuits (hardware), database software, memory hardware, accounting procedure, error-correcting procedure, hardware protection, software protection.

Text B

1. Read the texts and translate them into Ukrainian:

1. Logical circuit elements

As it is known, any digital calculation — whether it is per­formed by 'pencil and paper' methods or with the aid of an automatic computer— must first be broken down into a se­quence of elementary arithmetical operations, such as addition, or multiplication. Each such arithmetical operation may be con­verted into a sequence of simple logical operations. It should be noted that a binary digit may take only two values — "zero" and "one". A logical proposition may be either true or false.

A symbolism and a set of rules suitable for manipulating 'yes or no' logical propositions was developed by George Boole, a self-educated genius who became Professor of Mathematics at Cork University in the middle of the 19^lh century. The tech­niques of Boolean algebra are now extensively used by electri­cal engineers for the design and analysis of switching circuits. Both the arithmetic and control units of a computer consist of sets of switching circuits for directing and manipulating elec­trical pulse signals.

The process of combining a number of electronic circuits of known logical properties into an integrated system capable of performing special arithmetical or control functions is known as logical design.

2. The definition of mechanical brain

Let's imagine a railroad line with four stations marked in­put, storage, computer and output. These stations are joined by little gates or switches to the main railroad line. We can imag­ine that numbers and other information move along this rail­road line, loaded (занурені) in cars. Input and output are stations where numbers or other information go in and come out respectively. Storage is a station where there are many plat­forms and where information can be stored. The computer is a special station, somewhat like a factory. When two numbers are loaded on platforms 1 and 2 of this station and the command is loaded on platform 3, then another number is produced on plat­form4.

There is a tower, marked control. This tower runs a telegraph line to each of its little watchmen standing by the gates. The tower tells them when to open and when to shut which gates. Now we can see that as soon as the right gates are shut, cars loaded with information can move between stations. can be stored; channels along which information can be sent; mechanisms that carry out arithmetic and logical operations; a control, which guides the machine to perform a sequence of operations; input and output devices, where information can go into and out of the machine; and at last electricity, which provides energy. So by clos­ing the right gates, we can flash (відображати) numbers and in­formation through the system and perform operations of rea­soning. Thus we receive a mechanical brain.

In general, a mechanical brain is made up of: a quantity of registers where information can be stored; channels along which information can be sent; mechanisms that carry out arithmetic and logical operations; a control, which guides the machine to perform a sequence of operations; input and output devices, where information can go into and out of the machine; and at last electricity, which provides energy.

2. Make a plan to the texts in questions form.

3. Retell the texts according to your plan.

Text C

1. Listen and remember the following words and word-combinations:

computation process – процес обчислення

internal - внутрішній

external - зовнішній

the sequence - послідовність

capacity - потужність

reliability - надійність

to measure - вимірювати

binary digits – подвійні цифри

2. Listen to the text “Memory” and define if the statements are True or False:

1. Memory capacity is measured by the number of ma­chine words or binary digits.

2. The second­ary storage provides the information necessary for a single step in the

sequence of computation steps.

3. The secondary memory has a compara­tively low speed, but it is capable of storing

far greater amount of information than the main memory.

4. Memory consists of two main parts called the first, primary or internal memory

and the secondary or ex­ternal memory.

5. The computer memory must read the information transmitted from the input and

other devices.